Or ‘Knowing when it’s time to hang up your spurs’
After almost 23 years of being at the helm of Get Carter Productions, I’m now in the final hours before I hand the keys over to my trusted lieutenants, and explore new avenues in the happy pasture called retirement.
It’s a VERY odd feeling.
For anyone involved in advertising and marketing, you’ll know the constant struggle to be ‘relevant’, and at the same time, wise. It’s difficult to maintain at any point of your career, but probably gets harder the longer things go on.
I have to confess it’s been literally years since I’ve known more than one song in the top 40. I’ve also managed to avoid sitting through any full episodes of Love Island, Gogglebox, or anything featuring Claudia Winkleman. So you could argue that I’ve not been relevant for an awful long time.
But sticking to my powerfully prejudiced guns hasn’t stopped me from acquiring a bit of wisdom along the way.
The best advertising and marketing tells great stories, and speaks to people’s emotions – and the longer you live, the easier it feels to accomplish this. Practice makes perfect, and wisdom generally follows. I hope it’s served my wonderful clients well.
Having said all that, when you get a bit older and look around, you find a lot of people just like me. The fact that we’re probably hanging around garden centres, or trying to park for free at a National Trust property, doesn’t diminish the fact that we’re active functioning members of the UK economy – and we’re wise enough to know that we’ll always be relevant to someone.
As I look back on my working life (so far!), I feel more gratitude than anything else. It’s never felt like work, and I’ve enjoyed almost every minute of it. I’ve also had the privilege of working with some exceptional people, on some incredible projects, and enjoyed so much laughter along the way. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.
And the wisdom? If I’ve learned anything it’s this; find the thing you really love to do, set ambitious goals, and give it your very best go. The rest will take care of itself.
Paul
